Vintage Hemi-powered cars are still the mainstay of Mopar folklore, but they weren’t always readily available to everyday enthusiasts back in the day. That’s why Blue Ridge, Virginia’s Michael Damewood, and his 1968 426 wedge powered Dodge Dart generates such interest. It provides a twist on people’s conceptions of big-block Mopar power. “My granddaddy and brother had always had Dodges or Plymouths,” Damewood says, “but when I started looking for one when I was living in Louisiana, I found that there weren’t many four-speed Mopars with A/C delete down there because of the climate.
“My problem was that I was always looking for a particular one, a 1969 Coronet. I eventually stopped looking and was helping my buddies with their cars. Eventually, I went to look at this 1968 Dart GT with a 225 Slant Six that this guy said he had. It had rot around the corners, but the floors and windows were OK, so I ended up bringing it home. Decent sheet metal wasn’t readily available for Darts up to that time, so when Auto Metal Direct had full quarters hoods and fenders, the build was on!”
Once the sheet metal was replaced, Damewood went one step further by swapping out the original flat hood for an upscale replacement from a 1969 Dart Swinger. The chrome 340 inserts were then replaced with similar-looking 426 pieces. As the body was being prepped for painting, the original side moldings were removed and the mounting holes filled, while a 1969 Charger gas cap was installed on the car’s left-hand side.
Dave Stevens from Kolin, Louisiana, and David Barbour from Roanoke, Virginia, were both employed to finish the car in a 2012 factory-colored basecoat/ clearcoat. The roof was painted black, even though there was never a vinyl top of the car.
Continue reading your story on the app
Continue reading your story in the magazine
Orange Twist
LIVING LARGE WITH AN OLD-SCHOOL 426 STREET WEDGE DART
Striking Green
CAMPBELL AUTO RESTORATION COMBINES CLASSIC E-BODY STYLE WITH THE CAPABILITIES OF A 1970S GRAND TOURING COUPE. JASON JOHNSON’S 1972 BARRACUDA WAS BUILT TO GO HEAD-TO-HEAD WITH THE FINEST EXOTICS OF ITS ERA.
Muscle Car Era Console Update
REBUILDING A CENTER CONSOLE WITH YEARONE PARTS
Dedicated To The Cause
SERGEANT JOHN LIVINGSTON HAS OVERCOME PLENTY OF OBSTACLES IN HIS QUEST TO BUILD THE ULTIMATE ROAD RUNNER
Ok, Show Me.
GREETINGS FROM THE GRAVE
Just Do It
KENT NELSON SAVED THIS BELVEDERE II FROM CERTAIN DEATH
Custom-Tailored Mopar Quarter
OFF -THE-RACK PANEL INSTALLATION, OR TAILORED TO YOUR CAR?
Adding Fuel To The Fire
PLUMBING AN AEROMOTIVE STEALTH/PHANTOM IN-TANK FUEL PUMP TO FEED OUR HUNGRY ELEPHANT
Hot Parts
CALVERT RACING CALTRACS TRACTION BARS FOR MOPAR B-BODY NOW AVAILABLE AT SUMMIT
Family Affair
SON BUILDS BIG POWER FROM MOM’S SMALL-BLOCK DUSTER
Charlie's Angels
Film extra. Disco instructor. Wealthy Texas widow. The original Angels (Jaclyn Smith, Farrah Fawcett and Kate Jackson, right) never met an undercover gig they didn't like (or like to dress the part for)
Wild Rose
Model and Instagrammer Cydney Moreau is Louisiana’s loveliest flower
Dishes Foodies Travel For
“Good food is very often, even most often, simple food,” Anthony Bourdain said.
To Pick Up a Pen
I was so desperate that I almost was willing to give up all of my artisan-designed Montegrappas and Viscontis in return for a lowly Bic ballpoint ($8.79 per dozen).
DIAPER CREEP RETURNS TO HIS DIRTY DEEDS
A LOUISIANA loser with a crappy sexual fetish has admitted to tricking a health care worker into changing his adult diapers, cops claim.
Sharon D Clarke
IMAGINE YOU'RE ABOUT TO MAKE YOUR BROADWAY DEBUT IN A HIGHLY anticipated, groundbreaking musical, only to have it all put on hold because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
ALTERED METAL 2021
ALREADY IN ITS SECOND YEAR, THE ALTERED METAL SHOW PRESENTED BY KILLA KUSTOMS AND FINER PAINT AND BODY WORKS, IS QUICKLY BECOMING A GREAT WEEKEND EVENT DESIGNED THE ENTERTAIN THE WHOLE FAMILY. This event, based in the heart of southern Louisiana, has everything from local Cajun food to some amazing tie-dye tacos. Plenty of fun games and contests are held throughout the day to keep the whole family busy and, of course, a ton of sweet trucks are on display all weekend long. This year the production team behind Altered Metal provided a fun kid-only Easter egg hunt and a separate adult-only egg hunt that is so fun to watch!
The Way We Were–2020
I thought that with the mandatory slowing-down-of-life, stay-home-time, my cats would be and stay perfectly groomed.
Organ Donations and Other Adventures at the DMV
Chrissy (all names have been changed) was brain dead. After the doctors made the brain death determination, someone from the Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency met with her family and told them that she had elected to be an organ donor when she had gotten her driver’s license.
Hot Lips and the Stolen Medicine
Hot Lips (all names have been changed) was a coordinator for a home health care agency that provided sitters for patients.